Melody Riddle and the Order of the Phoenix
by lisa602
Summary: Melody has a hard time getting back into the rhythm of school after a few tragedies happen at the end of her last school year. With the ministry involved in running the school, she finds an unlikely friend in her father's greatest ally (character used with permission from Forbidden Moons). MELODY RIDDLE ALERT IN PROFILE.
1. Chapter 1

_Orele Ollivander stood across the room from none other than Lord Voldemort, who watched her with growing anticipation for what she had to say. It had been years since he'd seen her last and, he found, she still looked as young and beautiful as she had fourteen years ago. Even after caring for the child he left her with._

_She had very curly brown hair, that he remembered those mornings so many years ago when he saw her struggling to untangle it almost brought a smile to his snake-like face. Her eyes pierced menacingly into his, those silvery gray Ollivander eyes._

"_How long has Melody known you're her father?" she finally asked, putting it out into the empty air pretty casually considering how obvious her anger was._

_He smirked. "Since I was sharing Quirrell's body of course..."_

_Her nostrils flared, a warning of her impending anger. How many furious fits had he seen her get into? Quite a bit... "Did it never occur to you that I might have wanted a better future for our daughter?!"_

"_Nonetheless, a daughter you kept hidden from me for many years," he said, keeping his temper down. He didn't need to get angry, he could calm the woman down enough to make her understand._

"_For good reason!" she snapped, walking up to him purposefully and slapping him with all her might. He caught her wrist before she could do it again, and her other wrist as she tried once more. She gave a growl of frustration. "It may have been fun for me all those years ago to follow along with your plan to overtake the world and use Dark Magic any time I wanted, but those days are over! I don't want Melody to follow in your footsteps!"_

"_Your wishes are irrelevant when she's been helping me to power since the day she found out about me. You may have hoped that she would become a Mudblood lover such as yourself, but your actions to keep her from me were hopeless when she hid her true colors from you." Voldemort was beginning to wonder how he could keep his temper down with Orele continuing to glare at him as though he were still her lover and not one that would kill her should she make one wrong move._

_She paused. "She hasn't... she..."_

"_Are you finally going to be reasonable?" he asked._

_She stepped away from him, and he let go of her wrists. "You must have... have brainwashed her or something... I don't know this Melody you speak of!"_

"_As I said... she hid her true colors from you, very well it seems... You see, Orele? She is every bit my daughter as she is yours. As an heir of Slytherin, you should have realized she would agree with the job her ancestor – our ancestor – left us with."_

_Orele was shaking now. Whether it was from anger or fright – or both – he wasn't sure, but it certainly didn't bode well._

"_Why did you disappear all those years ago?" he asked impulsively. "I realize that you think you saw 'the error of your ways' but what good could have come from leaving the country?"_

_She looked at him. It wasn't like all the looks he got from everyone else – which was fear – it was the look of someone who knew him very well. At that moment, Orele was frightening him. He'd kept her all those years ago because he'd felt as though she was one to understand him – and having a lover who wasn't afraid of him was easier to... work with, one might say. But now, it was scary... if it meant he loved her, he'd have to kill her._

"_At the time," she replied shakily. "I thought it would give hope for Melody. To live in a home where there's no talk of the wizarding world – to live among Muggles... I guess I had been wrong."_

"_You can still correct that past mistake," he said, holding out his hand to her. Fear be damned, he wanted to see if he could bring her back to his side. His feelings could be pushed down if he really tried, because he knew Orele's magic was strong. She could even assume her old alias again. It would bring two dark wizards back from the dust when they were ready! Not only that... but even though she slapped him, which he'd have to deal with her about later, she hadn't shown any sign of noticing how frightening his face was. Did this mean she still loved him as she once told him she did?_

_Her original frigidness returned, so he instantly drew his hand back._

"_I regret nothing," she said, turning away from him to pace thoughtfully._

_Now she made him seethe, though in silence. He gave her an option and she refused! Surely she remembered he never did such a thing very often? He slowly took his wand out, drawing her attention right back to him._

"_Of course..." she said calmly. "I always knew that if I had to die, it would be by your hand."_

_He faltered, yet his anger grew to the ceiling. "What do you mean by that?"_

"_I mean..." she said, walking towards him so they looked at each other face to face. He was a lot taller than her – always had been – but she always looked rather dangerous for a short woman. "You're doing what you always do – taking the coward's way out so that you can stay on top. You're in love with me, though you'll never admit it! __**Aren't**__ you, Tom Riddle?"_

_Fury embedded itself into his deep red eyes. "I'm in love with no one, __**especially**__ not you!" She didn't cringe with fear or fury, rather stood there, bracing herself. "__**Avada Kedavra**__!"_

_A blinding green flash of light, and Orele crumpled down to the ground. Dead._

I sat bolt upright in bed. My breath was hitched, my heart felt frozen, _it can't be true, it just __**can't**__ be true!_ I quickly stood up out of bed and hurried out of my room to my mom's.

"Mom?" I called out, panicking. I slammed her door open... she wasn't in her bed. I checked in the room next door, but only Jim lay asleep. Completely unaware of the sudden death of his ex wife.

I didn't recognize the room they had been in, and wondered where it was that dad had moved to. Hoping dearly that I wasn't too late.

My Uncle Gerald poked his head out of his room, bleary-eyed. "Melody... what are you –?"

"_Where's mom_?!" I asked him.

"Whoa, calm the hysterics..." he said. His curly brown hair was ruffled from sleep, but he was waking up a little bit at a time as he talked to me.

I gave a "Agh!" of frustration and ran down the stairs, making sure Gerald wasn't around before I took some floo powder and jumped into the fireplace. Without really being sure of where to go, I threw down the powder shouting "Professor Snape's Office!"

He was just coming into his office when I jumped out – probably to get the next school year's work arranged – when I skidded to a halt across the room from him. He glared at me... he wasn't happy with me after he found out I already knew for a while who my dad was...

He was a sallow-faced man with greasy black hair and a hooked nose.

"Where is my dad hiding out right now?" I asked hurriedly.

"Why are you asking me? Surely you can send an owl out?" he said, turning away from me in disgust.

"Severus, I need to know right now! It's an _emergency_!"

"_Don't call me_ –"

"I don't have time to argue with you about names right now! _Professor_! _Sir_! _Whatever_! I don't have the time and I need to know where he is, _now_!"

He finally looked at me, a question in his eyes. "At Riddle House... why?"

So Dumbledore hadn't gone to search Little Hangleton yet. I could have figured. "Thank you!" I said, my voice cracking. I jumped back into the fireplace top speed, hoping I wouldn't be too late. He couldn't have done it already, he just _couldn't_. I blocked my mind so he couldn't see my terror – even blocked my emotions in case I was too late. _But I __**can't**__ be!_

"Riddle House!"

I came out of the fireplace in the living room and ran through the house in search for where the two of them were. Sadly enough, I found it. A room I had never set foot in before was where I found them now and was, of course, too late.

I felt as though I had just been immersed in freezing cold water, but my face showed no emotion. My mother was on the floor, her eyes open and lifeless – no, no longer my mom, just her left behind corpse. I put another wall up in my mind to bury my emotions further.

"Melody," dad said in surprise, looking up to see me. I felt Severus come up behind me and freeze, no doubt just noticing the body. Then dad smiled, clearing his throat he said, "You _saw_ it happen, didn't you?"

I nodded slowly, not quite understanding anything I was hearing but I thought it was maybe because I couldn't think anymore. Looking up at him – and making sure I didn't look stiff anymore – I said, "I'll just take her home with me, then."

He chuckled. At least everyone, including him, would think I was on his side. "Okay,"

he said, walking toward me with a smug look on his face.

I was looking past him at the dead body of Orele Ollivander as I asked, "A… pity she wasn't more easily consolable. I thought… that she would understand. She blew up at me as well."

"Yes…" he said. "But, we'll be better off this way…. Here is your mother's wand," he handed it to me. I took the wand, pocketing it. Another wall was put up in my mind. "Severus," he said curtly. Then he was gone from the room.

"How did you know she would be here?" Severus asked softly.

I had just stood my mom up, pulling her arm over my shoulders so she stood relatively upright. I ignored his question, feeling about ready to throw something. I put up another barrier in my mind, it made it easier for me to control my emotions - at least around someone like Severus.

I went into the fireplace with Severus, who did the honors of getting the floo powder to get us to the Ollivander Home, and Uncle Gerald was just coming down the stairs dressed up in regular clothes. I gently settled my mom down on the floor and sat down – keeping my mom's head in my lap.

"Orele, where have you –" he hadn't noticed she wasn't even awake – not even alive.

I added yet another barrier in my mind and looked up at him. "Dead... dead... Voldemort killed her - _dad_ killed her - just killed her…."

Gerald froze on the steps, on his face was a look of horror and confusion. He slowly continued his descent.

Severus knelt down next to me, looking me hard in the eyes. "You are genuinely sad that she is dead?"

I indignantly looked up at him. _She_ had _cared_ for me... she was _more_ than just _she_, she was _my mother_. I only just realized as I thought this that he couldn't read my thoughts, that my barriers were up so he couldn't see the onslaught of emotion swimming around in my head. I put up another barrier, hoping that I would stop feeling all the pain. "Of course," I said softly. "But _don't_ go to Professor Dumbledore about this..."

He seemed surprised that I knew what he thought... it wasn't that though. He trusted Professor Dumbledore. I just wasn't so certain about Professor Dumbledore's reaction should he be told.

"Melody, I must. Do what Orele would have wanted you to do. Tell _him_ and tell _me_ what has been going on – how you found out about your father and anything else."

I shook my head, bringing another barrier in. "You'd both be so disappointed." I looked up at the stairs and right at Gerald, "_All _of you would – you wouldn't understand..."

"You need to tell us... to tell Gerald and your grandparents..." he said softly. I could slightly see the small realization in his mind that I did care about what happened, but then it could have been something else. My vision was slightly clouded from all my emotional barriers.

Gerald just looked upon the scene with empty eyes, not able to say a word apparently.

"We all have a right to know what's been going on, Melody." Severus returned my gaze to him.

I contemplated it, Severus waited surprisingly patient. I reluctantly nodded. "Could you get my family members down here, then? They should hear it, too."

He nodded, "Of course."

"Thank you," I said, adding another barrier to my mind.

He went upstairs and came back down with the rest of the family, all rubbing their eyes in sleep. Only Nick and Blake were still upstairs in bed… well, it _was_ about four in the morning.

I looked down at my mom's face, her eyes were still open, glassed over with bravery. _What had she been __**thinking**__, going up to dad like that? Suicide?_

Severus pushed Gerald down into a seat. "I'll be back, all right?"

"Be quick..." I said, hugging my mom close to me.

He Disapparated.

"I'm so sorry..." I mumbled aloud, looking at mom's face. As I closed her eyes, I mumbled, "The last thing I ever said to you was that I hate you... but I don't." I hugged her closer, my emotions threatening to blow up.

"At least you've always said you loved her before that," Gerald said hollowly.

I added yet another barrier. How could dad be so heartless so easily?... But I felt his feelings... heard his thoughts… he had some sort of weakness for her that caused him to feel like he needed her….

There was a pop and Professor Dumbledore was there with Severus at his side.

Professor Dumbledore was a tall, old wizard with a long gray beard, a crooked nose, and half-moon spectacles. When there wasn't a situation as dire as this, he eyes would shine like a bright star.

"Let go of her, Melody," Professor Dumbledore said calmly. "You can't revive her by holding on to her."

"I know," I said, looking up at him and allowing for my anger to get out. "But it's all _my bloody fault _that she's _dead_!"

Professor Dumbledore knelt down beside me and pulled my mom gently out of my arms. Tenderly, he held onto my arm and helped me up. He seated me in a chair next to the fireplace. He took a chair and set it right in front of me, sitting in it so he could look at me. "How long have you known you're Lord Voldemort's daughter? I trust I don't need to use Veritaserum on you, so please answer truthfully."

Grandpa was furious by Professor Dumbledore's straightforwardness and was about to say something when Severus stopped him by holding his hand up, watching me all the while with intent.

"Since my first year at Hogwarts," I said, sounding smoother than I felt. "It was within my first month at Hogwarts. I was out at night and Professor Quirrell bumped into me – likely on purpose – and introduced me to dad."

Professor Dumbledore inhaled a deep breath. "I didn't realize you knew for so long."

"Even _I_ don't understand how you didn't know... I kept wondering why you could see through my dad when he was at school, but not _me_."

He looked thoughtful. "Tell me everything that happened since then."

I spilled everything that I never thought I would: about my first try at getting past the three-headed dog and trying to make it up to Severus after the dog bit him; about how in my second year my dad had told me to tell Lucius to put the diary in the school somehow – that I was consciously letting the Basilisk out throughout the year – and that I had ordered Dobby to try to keep Harry from Hogwarts with the knowledge it would go after him; about how I willingly helped Sirius in my third year, but my dad had wanted Peter Pettigrew, a.k.a. Wormtail, and so I sent him to Lord Voldemort before I lost consciousness from my concussion; and about how I helped dad by finding the Flesh, Blood, and Bone Potion in the Restricted Section with Barty Crouch Jr. to bring dad back to power and using a spell I made to silence Barty about me so that even Veritaserum couldn't get him to talk about me. The more I spilled, to more I felt slightly better about it... only none of it was really helping me.

"It all makes sense now..." Professor Dumbledore said in wonder. "But why have you been following orders from Lord Voldemort? You are strong and independent… –"

"I didn't understand why I did it at first… I first thought it was because of the idea that he _is_ my dad, and my mom lied to me about him." I looked him in the eyes, careful not to look away. "After a while it came to mind that Harry is the one who must defeat him. There is no defeating Lord Voldemort when he's hiding away, and the only way to get him out is if he returns to strength…. The only thing I haven't been sure about is how he hasn't been dying with all he's endured throughout the years."

Professor Dumbledore was awed. "Melody... have I ever told you how wonderfully _brilliant_ you are?"

Under any other circumstance, I think I would have blushed, but there I looked down at my hands with unease building up. "No... and I don't _deserve_ being called brilliant. Just look at what my so-called brilliance has caused."

Professor Dumbledore didn't reply to that, only glanced at Severus with a sad look on his face.

Severus asked the next question, "How did you know he'd killed her?"

"I have what Professor Trelawney would call 'The Sight.' At the end of my third year," I looked at Severus now, "when you and I went up to her room. She told me I would get it, and I did. Before the schools came last year, I went up to see her with Lissy so that I could stop having it… because it was annoying me. But, the best she could do was to put it in my dreams, which ended up giving Lissy the dreams, too. And so the two of us have been seeing things in our sleep since."

Lissy stood off to the side, looking at me in a different light. I didn't like it. The young girl - who is only about to start her second year at Hogwarts - with a small nose and hazel eyes. I wouldn't be surprised if she was traumatized for life seeing someone she just met, and got to know very well, dead. Murdered.

"How do you _both_ see them?" Professor Dumbledore asked, looking curiously between the two of us.

"I don't know, ask Professor Trelawney," I said, with a wave of my hand. "Thing is… she's only been seeing the ones where we're just observing what's going on… the recent ones; the one where Harry was kidnapped and taken to Little Hangleton, and the one this morning with my mom…. They're from my dad's point of view, and only I have seen them."

Severus looked at me, "And you never told me about this?"

"At first it didn't seem important – and then I really wouldn't have been able to tell you what I was seeing, because then you would suspect something considering most of them were tied to my dad."

Dumbledore nodded, and stood to look over everyone in the room. "It looks like we shall need some new plans for everyone here. Things will have to change and, while we won't be able to give more information about Orele's death due to Fudge's incomprehension about Voldemort's return, we _can_ keep the rest of you safe long before he finally shows himself to the world."

Gerald spoke up, "I'll move into hiding with Jim and Nick. Keep them safe."

Professor Dumbledore nodded as if he'd expected it. "If it's alright with everyone here…" he continued softly, picking up a piece of paper from the coffee table next to him. "I believe Orele left her will here…."

My head snapped up, "You mean she _knew_ she was going to be killed this morning?" I remembered her saying to dad _ "I always knew that if I had to die, it would be by your hand."_... but, surely she didn't expect it so soon? Was that what she wanted for herself?

"It would seem so…" he said, still as calm as ever while he read it, "everything is as I thought. Including what I had hoped to be the case for you." He looked up at Severus and me expectantly before continuing, "Lissy and Blake go to her parents, Nick stays with Jim - thankfully, Gerald has offered protective services - and she gives guardianship over Melody to Severus Snape as her godfather."


	2. Chapter 2

Severus had no reaction to this, just stared back at Professor Dumbledore with a strange look on his face. I was confused. With all the barriers taking up the space in my mind, it was hard to comprehend this part of mom's will. She never said anything about Severus being my godfather. Nothing at all.

"Didn't she tell either of you about this?" grandpa asked.

I looked at him, "What, so _you_ knew?"

He and grandma nodded. Grandma whispered something to Lissy, who looked taken aback but left the room to go upstairs. Our bedroom door, that we had only shared for two weeks now, closed.

"She wished it long before she left to America with you."

"But… how could she have known she'd die young…? In any way -"

"Where's her wand?" grandpa asked.

I took her wand out of my pocket and held it out for him to take it, but he shook his head.

"Look at it."

I shrugged, and observed it closely. My eyes widened. I'd never really looked at her wand before, surprisingly enough. It was cypress… calling to my mind the passage that grandpa had written about it in his journal:

"_Cypress wands are associated with nobility. The great medieval wandmaker, Geraint Ollivander, wrote that he was always honoured to match a cypress wand, for he knew he was meeting a witch or wizard who would die a heroic death. Fortunately, in these less blood-thirsty times, the possessors of cypress wands are rarely called upon to lay down their lives, though doubtless many of them would do so if required. Wands of Cypress find their soul mates among the brave, the bold and the self-sacrificing: those who are unafraid to confront the shadows in their own and others' natures."_

"But…" I said softly, "her death was hardly heroic."

"I think Orele knew something about how it would affect others in the future," Professor Dumbledore noted. "She knew her murder would say something about Voldemort that no one ever thought about." He continued looking over the will, and hmmed in interest. He bent down next to mom and pulled a small vial out of her pocket filled with a silvery white substance. A memory.

"What -?" I started to ask about it.

"This is a memory she wants me to show you at a later time… but it will mainly be for Harry's use."

_That's something very important, then,_ I thought. _What's it of?_

"At the moment, she wants you all to see something that she never showed you before…" he said, pocketing the vial to gently turn mom over. Brushing her hair out of the way, he revealed a gold tattoo of the head of an eagle on the back of her neck.

I thought it looked pretty cool, but… grandma gave a loud gasp, grandpa and Gerald stared at it with shock etched in their faces. Severus looked at it without surprise, but his eyes glittered strangely.

"_What?_" I asked. "What's the matter?"

"I always wondered…" Professor Dumbledore said softly. He looked at me, then, "Have you ever heard of a dark wizard who went by the name of the Predator?"

I shook my head, staring at the tattoo tentatively now. "Did she follow the Predator or something?"

"No, she _was_ the Predator," Severus said for the first time since Professor Dumbledore first read aloud the will.

_She __**was**__ the Predator…_ I thought, thinking back through her confrontation with dad. _"It may have been fun for me all those years ago to follow along with your plan to overtake the world and use Dark Magic any time I wanted, but those days are over!" _But I always thought that she'd just gotten into Dark Magic - after hearing it had been her forté in school - and that she'd just joined dad to be able to continue using it, or something. I never thought…

"What are the stories about the Predator? Why had I never heard of her?"

"Well… she'd been considered his greatest ally at the time," Gerald said. "She was forgotten because she disappeared a year before the Dark Lord's fall. No one worried about her again, thinking he'd killed her. I didn't think about how Orele had left at the same time… it never crossed my mind."

I did recall in the confrontation, dad telling mom that she could take up her old alias again. I hadn't thought it important after waking up, but now… she'd been a dark wizard…. Not only did she not want me to follow in dad's footsteps, but she didn't want me to follow in _hers_ either.

What a morning…

Professor Dumbledore looked at me. "The likely reason he killed her is because he felt he didn't need her. Now that he has you, he can turn you into his greatest ally."

Severus was shaking his head, "His second greatest ally, perhaps."

"What?"

Professor Dumbledore and I looked over at Severus questioningly.

"He's got the Angel of Death."

"Angel of _Death_?" I asked.

"Who -?" Professor Dumbledore started to asked.

"Seraphina."

"... Selwyn?"

He nodded.

"What is going on?" I asked.

"Ah…" Professor Dumbledore said, looking conflicted. "That's unfortunate. If I do recall correctly, she does have some very strong magic… and she is nearly as ruthless as Voldemort. But if he has Seraphina, why didn't he keep Orele alive? He could have had three great allies… become completely unstoppable."

"He did give her the option of being his ally again," I said.

"Really?"

"She refused, so he killed her… that, and she infuriated him further by asserting that he was in love with her."

Severus and Gerald both snorted.

Professor Dumbledore got lost in his own thoughts, looking back down at mom's will as though contemplating what needed to be done next.

"Melody," Severus said, drawing my eyes to him. "Go pack up your bags."

Right… he's my guardian now. _This is going to be __**weird**_. I just nodded, and stood up to go upstairs when Jim spoke.

"I don't understand _any_ of this…"

I stopped to look over at him. He was most definitely confused and uncertain about what was going on. I'd forgotten that he was in the room, he hadn't said anything until just then. "What's confusing?" I asked.

"It seems to me that it should be easy to kill this Voldy-what's-it, with you and this professor close enough to him to just do it."

I shrugged, "Considering everything this man has survived, I don't think he _can_ be easily killed. I don't know what his secret is, and whatever it is can't be very easy to break. He would have made sure of that."

He stared at me. "What happened to the girl I knew who was so sweet and caring... who had no secrets?"

_Oh, gosh,_ I thought, putting up another wall in my mind. "In case you missed it, Jim.. that little girl you knew grew up."

I went upstairs and opened my room to see Lissy sitting on her bed.

"Why didn't you tell me?" she asked.

I sighed, and pulled my trunk out. While stuffing my things in, I asked, "Tell you what?"

"That - that you're the daughter of the darkest lord of all time!"

"I didn't tell _anyone_ that I knew, Lissy. Not you, Becky, Draco, or anyone. I'd only just recently told Sev - Professor Snape - and you should've seen how _he_ reacted. Ignored me for the last week of school, and scowled whenever I tried to talk to him."

"Why didn't you tell Becky or Draco?"

I turned so quickly to look at her that she jumped. "You saw how _cruel_ he is, Lissy! Imagine if I were to tell anyone else, they'd be _terrified_ of me. I learned about it one month into my first year at school - brand new friends with them - if I were to have told them then that I was Lord Voldemort's daughter, how do you think they'd react?"

"They'd still be your friends," she said earnestly. "Becky - she'd be so glad that you trusted her. And Draco -"

I went back to packing. My cat, Bodoujn, stared at me with wide eyes. "You have a point with Becky, but Draco - heh… that's another story entirely. You should have seen his dad when he first found out, he stuttered and even now sort of tiptoes around me in case he gets me mad."

"Draco's _father_ knows, but Draco _doesn't_? Melody, you're dating him!"

"Yeah.. well.. now that my little secret might get out into the open, I might as well kiss him goodbye. Everyone, including him, will think that I'm as heartless as my dad and just… I don't know… drop and avoid me."

"He'd be too afraid to drop you -"

"_See_?" I shouted.

"Melody…" Lissy came up behind me and hugged me. I put up another barrier in my mind, feeling my emotions start to try breaking through just with the hug. "You need to let your tears out to feel better about this."

I shook my head, thinking of something else to say. It came to me. "You missed it downstairs… my mom has a golden tattoo on the back of her neck of an eagle. Apparently, she was another dark wizard many years ago by the name of the Predator."

Lissy pulled away and I turned to see her looking confused.

"What?"

"Trixy and I read that name somewhere… I think we were reading old newspapers that Madam Pince allowed us to borrow."

"I guess she really was famous back then…."

My mind travelled back to the person Severus said was dad's new ally. A Seraphina Selwyn going by the name of Angel of Death… well, she wasn't very well-known yet, but she obviously would be once she's known worldwide as Lord Voldemort's greatest ally. Whenever dad decided to come out of hiding, even I would be famous. I guess nothing could stop that.

I put the last of my stuff in the trunk, and closed it. Bodoujn was already obediently in his cage, which I closed and locked. I also dressed into shorts and a t-shirt, having noticed I was still in my pajamas.

"I guess…" I said softly, "I'll see you again on the train. Or just at Hogwarts."

Lissy nodded as I left the room and peeked into Blake's room. He was still sleeping. I probably would never see him again…. I made my way down the stairs to see Jim with his own bags packed. Nick stood beside him, rubbing his eyes tiredly.

Gerald was dressed in robes and a black cloak, his own bags laid beside him.

Severus stood in wait for me at the bottom of the stairs with Professor Dumbledore. I put my stuff down at the bottom and watched as he waved his wand at them. They disappeared. Likely to his home. He held out his arm.

I looked around at the Ollivander Home. Grandma and grandpa stood off to the side, looking at me with soft, encouraging smiles. Jim picked up little Nick and looked to Gerald who nodded to me as if it were our last farewell. Professor Dumbledore looked on the scene without reaction or comment, observing.

"What are you going to tell the Ministry?" I asked.

"The truth about her death _and_ her history… I won't say anything about your involvement with your father, since - even though you could attest to his resurrection, even though they still won't believe he's back - I'd like to keep you safe. But I want you and Severus in my office in one week. We have some things to discuss." Professor Dumbledore looked so serious that I worried about what he thought would happen after telling the truth. What would happen from now on...

I put up another wall in my mind as I took Severus' arm, and we Disapparated.


	3. Chapter 3

We appeared in a tiny sitting room which felt a bit like the dungeons back at Hogwarts where Severus' classroom was. Of course, it was like home away from home for him, then.

I noticed that the wall was completely covered with bookshelves filled with many, many books. I probably would never get bored. There was a couch, an armchair, and a small side table that seemed easily breakable.

Severus took out his wand, pointing it at the area of bookshelves behind one of the armchairs. With a bang, a hidden door flew open. There was a narrow staircase leading upstairs. He also revealed another hidden door right next to the staircase.

"Up that staircase are our rooms and the bathroom. You'll know which room is yours," Severus explained curtly. "The other room is the kitchen. I will keep these open during the day for you, but once it gets dark out I want you in your room so I can close these off."

"What, are you afraid someone will come in and kill us?" I asked, trying to sound casual.

"When you're a spy, you learn to keep certain areas of your home safe from those wishing you harm… it looks like you will have to get used to this."

"How dreary," I noted, moving slowly toward the staircase. This was going to be so weird. I made my way up the stairs, holding onto the rails every step of the way, and when I got to the top there was such little space. The bathroom was straight ahead, and to my right were two doors right across from each other - one opened and one closed.

I peaked into the open room to see my trunk and Bodoujn's cat cage on a small bed. Funnily enough, it looked exactly like the room I used at Hogwarts before I even started going to school there.

I instantly busied myself with opening up the cat cage so Bodoujn could roam around, and took my stuff out of my trunk. I moved all my Muggle clothes into the bedside dresser and my wizard robes, including my dress robes I wore at the Yule Ball the previous year, into the closet. My books I placed in the little mini bookshelf I had in my room - after taking a while to pull all the dust off with my hands.

When that finished, I looked around for something else to do. With all the books I now had access to downstairs, I was surprised to find that I didn't want to read anything. What else could I do? I felt like I needed to feel busy.

Bodoujn meowed at the door and I looked to see that Severus stood in the door frame.

He seemed as though he felt as awkward about me being in his house as I did. "Do you… need anything?"

"I have a few questions… is Bodoujn allowed to wander around?"

"He has the same freedom you do."

I nodded slowly, wringing my hands. "Could you give me some chores to do?"

He gave me a look that told me he definitely thought that wasn't a good idea. "Melody, give yourself a rest, you've just been through a terrible ordeal."

"No, I - I need to do something -"

Another look to shut up.

"A walk outside at least?" I asked. "Bit of fresh air?"

He sighed. "All right, but don't go far."

"I don't plan on - wait, where are we?"

"The street is Spinner's End - it's located in a Muggle village."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "I hardly think some dark wizard is going to want to go to the trouble of going to a Muggle village to kill you. They'd be too disgusted to even think about it."

He rolled his eyes, and walked away to go back downstairs.

I gave a small laugh, but it sounded hollow and lifeless. Yup, I need to do something. I brushed tangles out of my hair and stumbled down the stairs to hurry out the front door. Right outside was a cobbled street that seemed to branch out in thousands of different directions, mostly to other lines of houses or through alleyways. There was a stench that I noticed to be coming from the direction of a dirty river.

"Yeesh," I mumbled, looking right to the left to see a path into town. I turned to look at the house so I could memorize it. It was one of the larger houses with a towering mill chimney. That wouldn't be hard to find.

Walking into town with my hands buried deep into my pockets, I looked at my surroundings. Many people stared at me, as though they knew in an instant that I was not from around there. To escape the crowds, I slipped into a nearby shop and was surprised by the musty smell of old books. How long had it been since I was even in a Muggle bookstore, let alone one full of older books?

Wheezing came into my hearing as I looked at the piles all around me, and a small old man came into sight.

"Oh, you're a new person!" he said with wide eyes.

"Um, yeah…" I said softly.

"I don't remember any one's houses being up for sale, but sometimes people leave without notice - they're always the rude, secluded ones."

"Actually, I've come to live with… with my godfather."

"Ohh, you're really not from around here! That accent… what is it? I know I've heard it, but I can't call to mind what accent it is…"

I swallowed before I spoke, slightly surprised that I even still had the accent. "American."

"That's it! Something happened to your parents, I suppose, that caused you to have to move here?"

I fidgeted, "Yeah, I don't really want to talk about it."

"Eh, all right. Who's your godfather? I know everyone in this little town of ours."

"I don't think you'd know him that well, he's only here three months out of the year," I said.

His eyes widened once more. "Your godfather is Severus Snape? Good Lord, how did your parents know him? He never comes to town, makes me wonder how he gets along all alone in that house of his and what he does during the rest of the year!"

"So you know of him?" I felt surprised that the man even knew Severus' name. It wasn't exactly a small town like the man made it out to be.

"Everyone does! Everybody knows each other, but no one knows _him_ too well."

I started to walk around, noticing that not only were the books in large piles, but they were strewn about the floor. Almost none of them were on the shelves.

He watched me as I observed the room. "I keep meaning to clean all this up - people never put the books back - but it's all just piled up over the years…" the man said with a sigh. Then he looked at me in a scrutinizing way, "What did you say your name was?"

"I didn't say."

"Well, come on now, don't keep me in suspense! If you're going to live with Snape, you ought to let me know your name so I can tell the villagers of you."

"I'd rather you didn't… I'm going to be here as often as Severus, so I'm not very important."

"Everyone is important!"

_If only you knew…_ "Look, I'd love to put these books up in shelves for you."

"Oh no, I couldn't let -"

"You can't let these pile up even more, there won't be any more room to walk in a while. And it'll be too easy for one of these to just fall over and bury you. Here's the thing - I need something to do for the summer, and you need these on bookshelves, so what do you say?"

"Mmm… sure. I really appreciate the help!"

"No problem," I said.


	4. Chapter 4

I got back to Severus' house late that afternoon. Of course, the job was not finished yet, but I felt satisfied about what I got done. The store manager was pretty happy with what I did, and even paid me - forcibly, since I tried to refuse because it was Muggle money, of course, but afterwards I realized may be useful considering I don't know what Severus has in his kitchen. And I hadn't eaten at all so far.

So I stopped by a coffee shop and bought a glazed donut and a bottle of water to wash it down. The store manager eyed me suspiciously, as though thinking I'd stolen the money.

Considering Severus might wonder how I got the money to pay for the food, I quickly wolfed it all down, and threw away the trash left over. Then I left the shop and walked home - or what I hoped would feel like home sometime soon. I still thought of Ollivander Home as my home, and the thought of home caused me to put up yet another wall in my mind. How many walls had I had to put up that day?

The moment I walked in the door, I noticed Severus sitting in one of the armchairs reading a newspaper. It had only gotten slightly darker outside, but it cast a deep dark shadow over the sitting room.

When I closed the door behind me, the newspaper went down to his lap and he looked at me. "I thought you were just going out for a walk."

"I was, and I did. What's the problem?"

"You left at eight this morning. It's six in the afternoon. I thought the walk would take, at the most, fifteen minutes."

I collapsed onto the couch, saying, "Well, at least we've established that I don't do things the normal way this early on in our new relationship."

"This isn't going to be a normal occurrence, is it?"

"It probably will be, sorry if I disappoint."

He sighed. "You should go eat something. There are leftovers in the kitchen. Then I want you in bed right after."

I looked at him, "It's six o'clock! It won't take hours to eat."

"I know."

"An early bedtime?"

"Just for tonight, Melody. You were up at four this morning."

"So were you, surprisingly enough, and in your office too. I doubt _you_ normally go to bed so early."

"We're not having a discussion about this. My decision is final," he all but snapped.

"Okay then, mister bossy," I grumbled, standing up and walking into kitchen.

It was a tiny little room, with just about too many cabinets and one refrigerator that was too big to have even gotten in through the doorway. I opened it up to see a container of rice. That was it.

"What are your plans for meals tomorrow?" I asked, pulling the rice out and almost sighing at it.

"I'll restock," he said with a wave of his hand.

"One meal at a time?"

"It's how I've always done it."

I rolled my eyes. _I may have to buy some groceries tomorrow_, I thought as I opened up the container and scrutinized it. As I searched around for a fork, I asked, "Do you have anything I can put on this?"

"What do you mean?"

I found a fork in one of the drawers and went to stand in the doorway to look at him, "You know… something like soy sauce, or at the very least some salt?"

"No."

"It's going to be very hard to eat this as it is."

"I didn't realize you were a picky eater."

I groaned in frustration. One of his brows went up at my reaction, but he no sooner opened his mouth than there was a hard knock at the door.

Severus put his newspaper down and stood to glide over to the door. I put the rice back in the refrigerator and then leaned against the doorframe of the kitchen, crossing my arms as Severus opened the front door to reveal Draco.

He could see me from the door and pushed his way in.

"Come in, then," Severus said, as though trying to save the bad manners, and closed the door. He made his way over to the staircase, "I'll be upstairs." Then he was gone, and it was just Draco and I alone in tense silence.

Draco seemed to hesitate as he looked at me. Then he asked, "_Why_ didn't you tell me?"

I was bewildered, "Well, it just happened today, I mean -"

"What happened this morning is not what I'm talking about! Lissy already told me all about it, and about - about - I - why didn't you tell me who your dad was?"

I sighed. "Just take a look at how you're reacting. It's not exactly the most wonderful news in the world to hear, now, is it?"

"I - I'm - I just -" he struggled, as though he was just realizing he had to be careful of how he speaks to a teacher.

"You're afraid of me, aren't you?" I asked, feeling my throat dry up, but keeping a cool expression.

"N-No - I… how do I say this nicely? I thought that you would trust Becky and I with-"

"So you could both come to fear me? _Bow_ and speak with reverence when I'm in the room? Treat me as you would my father - the Dark Lord?"

He had no answer, just looked at me without recognition.

"I did think about doing this since his return, but I kept putting it off. I know it's too late and… that I've lost you now… so I'll relieve you of the job and just say that you and I are over."

"I - what?" he seemed surprised. Whether because he was planning on breaking up with me or he had some other idea of what was going to happen with this meeting.

I stood straighter, as though to show that I was superior. Be feared. "You heard correctly." I couldn't quite understand what his reaction was to this. My blurry vision made it confusing in my mind, but what I could see of him looked kind of devastated. Before he could say anything else, I said, "You know where the door is." I wanted to say that I was sorry, but if he was going to fear me I couldn't. Another barrier went up in my mind, and I had to tell myself, _no more barriers or you'll soon become blind to other people's emotions, Melody!_

"You didn't let him say what he wanted to say to you," Severus said. He'd been listening from the top of the stairs.

"It's none of your business."

"Melody Riddle," he said in a warning tone.

I almost rolled my eyes. Almost. "Sorry for being rude to you, I won't do it again. I'm just going to go to bed early like you'd wanted me to."

"Did you even eat your dinner?"

"I don't want it, thanks."

Severus shook his head as I turned and went into my room, closing the door behind me. He probably knew what I was doing with my mind - I wasn't sure how to keep the barriers from affecting my reactions to things, but it felt better to pretend that I didn't care.

I woke up early the next morning - to my surprise, before Severus - I got ready and went out. I allowed myself to work on shelving the books for half of the day, got the pay by the little old man who wouldn't let me leave without it, and popped over to the grocery store.

The store clerk, a plump young woman, noticed me first and smiled kindly. "Buying groceries for your godfather?"

_I suppose the manager of the bookshop is a sort of famous gossipmonger_, I thought as I nodded, "I'm just trying to make his home a little more habitable."

She chuckled, "I suppose it would be a bit strange considering he's hardly ever there. Do _you_ know why he only stays there for the summer?"

_Man, Muggles are __**nosy**__ here! Make something up!_ "Um… well, it's supposed to be a secret, apparently. He does a lot of travelling, so he's been many places - yet he won't _tell_ me about them. He might take me with him, or leave me here, who knows?"

"If he leaves you here, I've got some extra rooms in my house. You could bunk with me."

I forced a smile onto my face, "He'll probably say no, but thanks for the offer." Picking up a carton of milk, I asked, "Where might the spices be?"

"Aisle four. I suppose you used up whatever spices he had, huh?"

I snorted, "He didn't even have any… are there any bags I can use for the stuff? I might break my arms trying to carry everything."

She laughed. "Sure," she grabbed a plastic green basket and handed it to me. "I insist you use that to carry the groceries home. You can bring it back later."

"Are you sure you want to trust me with this?"

"Of course. This is a small town, so if you forget I can just stop by your house and remind you."

"Oh… thanks…" I said, leaving her to finish up my shopping.

When I left the shop I ended up having to hold the milk in my right hand while the basket was in my left hand with fruits, vegetables, meats, spices, and some sweets. Because of this experience, I felt more like I was living on my own - except, of course, including Severus and those strange ground rules of his.

I opened the door to the house to find that Severus was _not_ alone. A young woman with pale skin, midnight black hair, and blood red lips stood in the room talking to him. She also had high cheekbones and a pair of eerie electric blue cat-eyes - chilling, yet magical. She wore robes of ocean blue, matching her eyes, and a brilliant choker of green and gold around her neck. There was this new aura in the room of extremely strong power, and I could only guess at who this stranger was.

Severus snapped, "How did you buy all that?"

"With money, what else?" I said, stepping in and closing the door behind me. Putting the basket and carton of milk down, I asked, "Are you going to tell me who this is?"

A grimace appeared on his face and the woman smirked mischievously. "Go ahead, Snape - _introduce_ us!" Her voice was smooth and silky, and there was a note of a strong ability to persuade.

"Melody… this is Seraphina Selwyn -"

She cleared her throat.

He took a deep breath, as though needing to bite his tongue. "Seraphina _Morphine_ Selwyn. Also known as Angel of Death."

"See? That wasn't so hard, now, was it?"

He glared at her, "Now that introductions are over, let me ask you again. Why would the Dark Lord ask for you to risk your life in order to teach Melody, when I can just as easily do it myself?"

"I would have thought you'd know the answer to that one - but, of course, you're just not trusting my word. Do I _really have_ to bring Voldy here in order for you to believe his instructions?"

He rolled his eyes. I could have laughed at that nickname.

Seraphina went on, "But if you really _don't_ know, his reasoning is this - you are only his follower, albeit a very trustworthy follower. _I_, however, am his greatest ally with the strongest magic and can easily go in under disguise. That, and you're forgetting what it is I'm supposed to teach her - Dark Magic. If she's going to be a strong ally, she needs a strong ally to help her along."

_Dark Magic… of course he'd expect me to learn it._

"And another thing," she continued. "I will be able to protect her, if need be."

Severus growled, "I can't promise that Dumbledore will even _agree_ to this, especially letting you in the castle." I picked up the groceries as they bantered.

Seraphina scoffed, "As if _I_'d endanger his _precious_ student."

"He won't take any chances after what nearly happened to Potter last year -"

"Don't worry, I'm just the third wheel here," I said, walking through the space between them.

I was in the kitchen when I heard Seraphina whisper to him, "How long have those walls been up in her mind?"

I paused to listen.

Severus replied back in the same tone, "Since she found her mother's body yesterday morning."

"She's got fourteen of them! Why haven't you stopped her?"

"You haven't gotten to know her yet. She's stubborn… Okay, I thought I'd let her continue to do that for a while, since it seemed to keep her from worrying too much about the incident. I thought I might get her to bring them down today, especially since she even broke up with her boyfriend last night."

A sigh, and then I could _just_ hear her talking lower, sounding as though she were shaking her head, "Snape, Snape, Snape… you really _aren't_ daddy material. Don't you know that the more she does that, the more likely it will be that she'll be off a lot worse later?"

A pause, and then I heard him groan, "I _hate_ that you're right."

"I'll talk to her and let _you_ go ask Dumbledore about the plan. Have fun!"

Before he could protest, I heard her walking towards the kitchen. My mouth set in a thin line as I opened the fridge to put most of the groceries in, knowing she was about to try talking 'sense' into me. But she didn't even know me, so what -

"I know you heard us," she said. I turned to see her standing in the doorway.

"You're not changing my mind," I said.

She surprised me. "I wouldn't _dream_ of it… the thing is, blocking your mind - your emotions - can only help you for so long. Sooner or later, those walls are going to crack and allow nightmares and traumatic memories in… and when that happens, it will all fall down. Your emotions will, as they say, _explode_."

I closed the fridge with a sigh. "I didn't realize anyone would notice my protective walls."

Seraphina chuckled, "Perhaps with your other friends, but with people as skilled at Legilimency and Occlumency as Snape and I - and your father, of course - that is impossible."

"You mean my dad knows too? Oh, gosh…"

She laughed, "No, I added him as an afterthought on purpose. He only looks into people's minds when he wants to learn something. He thinks he knows enough about you, I believe."

"And _you_ looked into my mind for some other reason?" I asked with a raised brow.

"Mm.. good point," she said. "But _my_ point was that Snape noticed because he obviously cares for you. He might not be a good father figure yet, but he's trying. He'll be good in time."

"It's not _his_ job to be my father figure, he's just my guardian - _and_ my teacher, for that matter. My real father is pretty mediocre at the job so far."

Seraphina burst into laughter, causing me to give a little laugh, too.

"It's good to know you have a sense of humor, darling, but right now you've allowed a small crack on your wall big enough to fit a childhood fear in. Just with that little laugh."

I still smiled, "Never really had a childhood fear, myself, but… what do you suggest?" It was only just after I asked that I realized she'd gotten me to give in without trying. _How?!_

"You have fourteen walls built up in your mind right now. If you break one down one every day - okay, one every week - _fine_, every month - you can slowly become stable again." I'd been giving a face at each suggestion, finally nodding when she said 'every month.' It was _risky_, I know, but I was still thinking through my mind about how she'd changed my mind. Seraphina continued, "If you blow up before you can break each wall down by yourself, I can't guarantee that Snape will be very accommodating with you crying into his shoulder."

"I doubt I'd blow up and instantly go running to him. He's never been a cuddly teddy bear, and I don't really want to know if he could be one. It would be weird."

Seraphina laughed again. "Oh, your humor is delightful. I'm sure we'll get along well."

I smiled, putting the spices into a cabinet above the sink. "What sort of Dark Magic will I be learning?"

"Everything there is to know… I built up much of my knowledge on Dark Magic through sneaking in to the restricted section in the Hogwarts library at night. You can get these books easily with permission from Snape, though you'll have to be careful."

"Careful? Why?"

"Because of the drastic end of the Triwizard Tournament, and the murder of your mother, Fudge is ever more stubborn at denying the return of your father. Of course, he expected this, which is why I'm coming to keep guard over you. Dumbledore is so adamant about Voldemort's return that the minister is worried, and so they're going to be interfering at Hogwarts this coming year."

I frowned, "I have a feeling that that's not even the worst part."

A solemn nod. "When your mother, Orele, returned to London, the first thing she did was tell the Ministry about who your father was. Lied, and told them that he'd raped her so that they wouldn't realize her history as the Predator, but she also assured them that she raised you to be 'better,'" Seraphina even did the motion for quotes around 'better.' I'd almost forgotten her alliance to dad within the past few minutes. She continued, "So they believed her.

"But now, with the possibility of printing headlines that would bring the world into turmoil and fear again, they're looking for people to blame. Dumbledore's information about Orele really being the Predator has them feeling suspicious about you. They will try to interrogate you and trick you into incriminating yourself this year, and you can't let them get to you."

"So… no pressure…." I said, surprised by all this. Then I asked, "How do you _know_ about all this?"

Seraphina smirked, "I have my own followers as well, and many of them are in important positions at the Ministry. Quite a few of them were there when Orele explained about you some years ago, and then yesterday when Dumbledore explained about Orele. They had to pretend that they didn't believe Voldemort killed her, and so ruled it an accident just like that poor boy's death, but they did ask me to lend their condolences to you."

I was slightly taken aback by this, "Oh… I.. give them my thanks, then." It seemed kind of odd to me that she had followers as well, but I shouldn't be surprised. She was dad's _ally_, after all, and _not_ his follower.

A loud _crack_ sounded and Severus waltzed right up to Seraphina from the living room.

"What did he say?" she asked.

"He doesn't like it…" he began, looking as though he'd eaten something sour. "But he does agree that Melody needs someone to teach and guard her in secret. So, he says yes."

She smirked knowingly, "He _won't_ be disappointed."


	5. Chapter 5

"Melody, we've got to go!" Severus shouted from downstairs.

It had been a week since I moved in at Severus' house, and I was up in my room rolling my eyes at his impatience.

It was quite something living with him, he'd set even more ground rules once he found out that the money I'd paid the groceries with was earned by working at the bookshop. Of course… I'd waited about four days before telling him, since it took that long to get all the books sorted and on their shelves. Also, knowing how he'd react, I got the money from the little old man and told him that I probably wouldn't be allowed to return. Suffice to say, I'd been right.

I was now mainly confined to the house. It felt like house arrest at times, but I liked it when Seraphina came to visit each day. Throughout my problem with Draco and Lissy, and my largest possible problem to come with Becky, in terms of people finding out my history, I enjoyed having Seraphina over. But Severus didn't like it.

He'd told me more than once, "You can't trust her, Melody."

I usually responded with just, "Bog off, I don't trust anyone these days _anyways_." That response usually sent me to my room for a few hours. I don't think he realizes yet that his form of punishment is not exactly working. I _do_ have books up there to pass the time.

I walked slowly down the stairs saying, "It's not like Professor Dumbledore set a certain time and warned us not to be late. We have all day!"

"Dumbledore has a plan for you that may happen to take most of the day," he said, holding out his arm.

I looked at him, one of my eyebrows raised, "What would that be?"

"He'll tell you when we get there," he growled.

"I _really_ don't think anyone's going to be listening in on us here."

"I would feel more comfortable discussing it at the school."

I sighed, taking hold of his arm. He Apparated us in front of Hogwarts and began speed walking toward the gates. I had to run to catch up with him, "Honestly, Severus, you're being very _difficult_ today!"

He didn't answer. Just opened up the gate, closed it once I got in, and trekked quickly toward the castle.

I shook my head, deciding not to even run after him. But, it was a funny surprise to get to the front doors to find him waiting for me - though he looked as though he was about to blow with anger, I said, "Aww, it's so sweet of you to wait."

He sighed and walked slowly to the Headmaster's office with me. "I could swear you've become more sarcastic," he said.

"No, I actually meant it when I said it was sweet of you to wait."

"It didn't sound like it."

"Oh, well, then I guess I shall become _the_ sarcastic dark witch by the end of the year. My line - 'sarcastic all the time!'"

He let out a snort, and held his hand to his mouth to keep from laughing.

"Don't hold in that laugh, you know you want to let it out."

Clearing his throat, he shook his head - his facial expression back to that serious look I knew so well as we reached the entrance to the Headmaster's office. The gargoyle blocked our path, and moved when Severus said, "Fizzing Whizbee."

We walked into the large, circular room filled with magical instruments, portraits of former headmasters of Hogwarts, and the Sorting Hat. Professor Dumbledore was seated behind his desk and, upon our entrance, smiled at me - as though for some encouragement. Severus stood by the desk while I sat in the seat in front of it.

"How is this new arrangement working out for the two of you?" Professor Dumbledore asked us.

"It surprises me how outspoken she is outside of school," Severus said. "It's unbecoming."

I snorted, not expecting that. "I was about to say that everything was fine, but now I feel obligated to say that it's strange how strict you become each day in your rules. It's very… what's the word?... Austere. But then - you've always been like that, so I'm not really saying anything _new,_ now am I?"

He gestured to me with one hand, "See? She doesn't even listen to me half the time."

"Only because you tell me stuff I already know."

"She's become awfully close to Seraphina, and I don't like it. You remember how it was when she went to school here, Dumbledore, all the students feared her. Even her own friends - it always made me wonder whether they actually _were_ her friends -"

"What are you going on about _that_ for?" I asked, annoyed that he continued to speak about me as though I wasn't there. "She already told me all about that. It was mainly because she always seemed so intimidating to everyone, you know how strong her aura is when -"

"- Even confides in her. I think she wants something from Melody which she may spill to Seraphina about if she's not careful."

I shook my head, leaning back into my seat, "_Honestly_, Severus."

Professor Dumbledore looked kindly at me, "Severus _is_ your guardian now -"

"I can make my own decisions -"

"- Not when it has to do with Seraphina," Severus cut in.

I glared up at him, and then looked back to Professor Dumbledore. "It has been agreed by _both_ _you_ _and my dad_ that Seraphina is going to be my teacher and guardian this year. So, obviously, she and I are going to be around each other quite a lot. No matter what you say, my dad wants the two of us to get to know each other, and for his own good reasons - or bad reasons in your eyes.. Severus may be my guardian, but he's _not_ my dad."

Neither of them answered.

I sighed, "We obviously didn't come us here because of my interactions with Seraphina, so what's the deal? What's the ministry planning to do about mom's so-called accident? Newspapers or -"

"An article was printed about Orele's death after you left with Severus, ruled as a heart attack. Her funeral is in a few days -"

"_Heart Attack_? She was thirty five!" I choked out. I quickly regained my composure, hearing Seraphina's voice in my mind from when she said, after I had laughed the first time we met, _you've allowed a small crack on your wall_. She even warned me not to add any more just the day before.

She'd said, "There's no knowing how many walls your mind will be able to take before it all automatically crumbles to the ground. Just to be safe, I think you should refrain from adding any more. The less you have, the more likely you can continue on without breaking down."

"Heart attacks _are_ possible at thirty five," Professor Dumbledore said calmly. "_We_ know she didn't die of a heart attack. The same goes for the Order of the Phoenix."

"The what?" I asked.

"The Order of the Phoenix. It's a secret society of all the witches and wizards who fought Voldemort during the last war who are still alive, plus a few. We found a spot for it, thanks to a friend -"

Severus snorted. Professor Dumbledore continued.

"- who kindly let us borrow it. They've been there for a while with young students you know who need some help in cleaning the place up. I offered for you to come and they were excited to have you."

I shook my head, "I couldn't possibly." Order of the Phoenix, it was most like the Weasleys, maybe Hermione, and most definitely Harry that were going to be there.

"You were fine with helping out at a Muggle bookshop, why not at the Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix?" Severus asked.

"That was completely different! I didn't have to lie to the Muggle, all I had to do was avoid talking about myself. I can't do that with people I _know_."

"I can tell them not to ask you any questions, if you wish. It's alright, they'll be the only ones that have no knowledge of who your father is or who your mother was. They aren't allowed at the meetings."

I stared at him. "But members from the Order of the Phoenix _do_ know?"

"Only Severus and I know about how you've willingly helped Voldemort -"

"That doesn't make it any better."

Severus put a hand on my shoulder comfortingly. "Melody, we thought that this would be best for you. You did say you wanted something to do, and this is it. Working in a Muggle village isn't safe, especially during those times when I won't be nearby."

"Seraphina could -"

"She's not your babysitter -"

"Neither are you -"

"Hear me out!... Seraphina doesn't have all the free time in the world, either. This entire summer, she has discussions with the Dark Lord and jobs to do. She visits you when she's available, and I _will_ tell her that you'll be out of reach for the rest of the summer. This may sound like a plan to keep you and Seraphina separated, and I know you said you don't trust anyone these days, but trust _me _when I say that I want you to be safe… you can do that, can't you?"

_If I were a few years older…_ I thought with a sigh. _I would be able to decide for myself what I would do, whether it's safe or not._ But, acquiescently, I replied, "Yes, I can trust you." _What other choice do I have, anyways?_


	6. Chapter 6

Severus took me back to his house a while later and said, "You should pack up your stuff now. I'll work on the groceries you bought."

"What do you mean you'll 'work on the groceries?'"

"You won't be living here, so you should bring them with you."

"I thought you'd just keep those and - you know - _eat_ them."

"No, you bought these with your own money. Besides, I like my process of -"

"You weren't thinking that when I made some corn on the cob last night. Or pork chops the night before. Or a mix of vegetables the night before that. Or -"

"Melody, just go do what I said," he said irritably, pointing to the staircase.

"I feel so undervalued," I replied, walking in the direction he pointed.

"You _have_ become more sarcastic while living with me. It's -"

"Very unbecoming, I know!" I said, walking up the stairs. Upon going into my room, I softly said, "Hardly here a week and he's so eager to get me out." Bodoujn, who'd been napping on my bed, sat up meowed curiously. "We're moving again," I told him. "To some place where I'm out of Severus' hair."

I held my hand out and he gently head butted it. I pet his head a few times before sighing and packing my stuff up again.

"After getting all this dust off, too," I mumbled, taking my books off of the shelf. It took a faster time for me to get all my stuff into the trunk. Everything was folded, and of the robes I had in my closet I only took out my school robes, quickly closing the closet door on the dress robes. _Don't put up another wall_, I forced myself to think as memories of the day my mom and I went to get them showed up.

I sat down on my bed once I was done packing up and held my face in my hands. _Stop thinking about it, stop thinking about it_. Bodoujn head butted my head, a meow sounding at the back of his throat.

"Should I take a barrier down now?" I asked him, scratching his chin. Another meow. I sighed, looking into my head and watching as one of my walls crumbled down. Some emotions hit me like a gunshot, but after a few deep breaths I was calm again. One tear escaped, but I wiped it away. "That wasn't as bad as I thought it would be," I said. "One down, thirteen more to go."

I grabbed his cat cage and, picking up my trunk, walked out and down the stairs with Bodoujn following behind me.

Once downstairs, I asked, "When are you taking me there?"

"Late tonight - it's safest."

I put my stuff down by the the stairs, where the groceries were in plastic bags, and collapsed onto the armchair across from the couch where Severus sat. He was reading the newspaper. "So I just got all packed up and we're not leaving for another number of hours? Most of the groceries won't last that long outside of the fridge."

"Have you forgotten that I can use magic?"

"Oh, right… so there's some sort of cold charm on some of the grocery bags… and, let me guess, you just waved your wand to put them _in_ the bags, too."

He nodded.

"Cheater."

He looked up at me in annoyance.

"I'm _teasing_ you, for goodness' sake!"

He rolled his eyes, and looked at the paper again.

"Could I read the newspaper article that was released about my mom?"

"No."

A _crack_ sounded just as I was about to retort. It was Seraphina. She sat down next to me and, looking between Severus and I, said, "I've just walked in on something, haven't I?... Perfect."

"Good of you to come," Severus said dryly. "It wouldn't betray my duty to tell you now that Melody will be out of reach for the rest of the summer."

"Oh? Why's that?"

"My safety," I grumbled.

Seraphina raised an eyebrow at Severus, "Am I going to hear some details or should I just assume she's really going away because you don't like me coming to visit her?"

Severus glared pointedly at me.

"Oh, please, how am I supposed to have told her that that's not a reason you're sending me away?"

He shook his head and looked at her, "I don't feel Melody is safe enough here. Especially since there are times when she could be alone."

"I have a wand to protect myself -"

"I understand…" Seraphina said, nodding. "See, darling, even with a wand to protect yourself from who knows what, the Ministry is keeping a close eye on you. One spark out of the wand and they'll feel they have every reason to expel you from school."

I made a face. "Who or what would attack me anyways? I sincerely _doubt_ that a member from either side of the inevitable war have reason to come after me just now."

"You don't know what the _Ministry_ could be capable of."

"I… don't know what to say to that except that I could understand Harry Potter being safeguarded this way. Just not me."

"He has wizards guarding him twenty four seven."

"Wait… so he's not at the Headquarters for -"

"No," Severus interjected quickly. "His friends are, and Dumbledore won't allow them to tell him anything about the news they hear."

I opened my mouth as puzzle pieces came together in my mind. "Harry isn't allowed to know anything… and you and Professor Dumbledore told me that the students who are at Headquarters aren't allowed at the meetings… you don't want me to know anything either!"

"For heaven's sake, Melody," he said, bringing his hand to his face.

"I'm right, aren't I? You know, you all tried to keep me in the dark about my dad and look how that turned out. You can't hide stuff from me just because I'm 'too young.'"

"You don't need to know everything. Once you finished your lessons with Seraphina, then you'll be let in on what's going on -"

"And how long might that take? Until I'm seventeen? I may only just be turning fifteen but I know I've proved myself able to understand what's going on, and take part in discussions about what to do."

Severus gave me a silencing look, and said, "I've had enough of this. There will be more discussion about it." He then stood up, and walked up the stairs - probably to his bedroom.

"How dramatic…" Seraphina said softly.

"I just… why can't he trust me?"

"You've got to admit, it would be hard to," she replied with a small shrug. "You've been hiding a lot about yourself for four years."

"I thought that would be perfect for the life of a spy!"

A chuckle. "That's true, though he would have expected that you would tell him what you knew if you were truly spying for Dumbledore." I looked down at my feet. She had a point. "And, not to forget, there's also his will to protect you."

"I can protect myself," I leaned back and crossed my arms.

"Of course you can, darling," she replied. _Did she sound sarcastic there?_

I looked at her, an eyebrow raised, and she merely chuckled.

"You do have to look at everything in a different perspective. What help can students be when they're going to be at school for the better part of a year? Not only that, but with the Ministry interfering, you're going to be watched very carefully. If you show any sort of tie to Dumbledore or the Order, you'll be expelled. Maybe even worse."

I sighed. She certainly gave me more perspective on it than Severus or Professor Dumbledore did. "Seriously, how do you always find a way to change my mind?"

"It's a gift… but, don't worry about being kept in the dark," she added as an afterthought. Leaning in, she whispered, "I'll give you news when we next meet."

A smile crossed my lips, "Thanks. I appreciate it."


End file.
